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'One of the Stranger Nights.' Remember When Scott Jennings Obliterated Touré's Anti-Trump Narrative?

Amy Curtis
Amy Curtis  |  July 14, 2026 3:00 PM

Last February, Scott Jennings had an interesting back-and-forth with Touré, the Leftist commentator who said he figured out the real purpose of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Touré insists the purpose of DOGE was to shrink the government, so unelected bureaucrats couldn't 'resist' President Trump.

That's interesting for a couple of reasons, which we'll get to in a moment, but first here's the exchange, which is making the rounds on X again.

"Can I be real for a moment that DOGE is not about cutting money, right? It's not about spending. It's about shrinking government so that it'll be too small to stop Trump with whatever else is in this plan," Touré said.

"Why would the government stop Trump? Isn't he the head of the government?" Jennings asked. "You're saying the government would be too small to stop Trump. If Trump's the president, why would the government, the bureaucracy, be actively trying to stop him?"

"Because he is shredding the Constitution," Touré replied. "And creating an authoritarian dictatorship."

"Is he?" Jennings asked.

"And no matter who is in office, I am going to hold them accountable, but more importantly, I'm going to make sure the government is working for the American people," said Alencia Johnson, a former Harris 2024 campaign advisor. 

You mean the American people who elected Donald Trump president in 2024?

"Both of you made an interesting point, which is that your view is that Trump is 'shredding' the Constitution — I'd like to hear more about that — but that, it seems to me that you all both believe that the unelected part of our government, the bureaucracy, has a responsibility to resist the political leadership. Is that your view?" Jennings asked.

And that's when the spin began.

"It's not actually what we said," Johnson replied.

Touré interjected, "Not at all."

"We said they are upholding the Constitution," Johnson added. "The principles of the Constitution."

"How is Trump shredding the Constitution?" Jennings asked. Johnson and Touré laughed. 

"We put all power in the executive branch," Touré said. 

Who did that? That was Obama.

"The legislative branch, the FBI, now we're in control of the military, silencing the media. This is what you do in a dictatorship," Touré said.

"Are you suggesting that the President is not the commander-in-chief of the military?" Jennings asked.

"I am suggesting that the President is going to put in charge somebody who is going to contravene the Constitution," Touré replied, without providing any evidence. "And at some near point, this conversation will look very silly for you, because it will be obvious."

Now, a year and a half later, Jennings was right, and Touré is the one who looks silly.

"I'm interested in this conversation. He's going to put someone in charge who is going to contravene the Constitution. Who?" Jennings asked. "What do you mean by that? The President is in charge of the military, is he not? You said he's going to put someone in charge of the military."

"He was elected president," Jennings added. "We, according to the Constitution, vest all executive authority in a president, and the concept that the military should be an independent agency or the bureaucracy should resist the political leadership of this government is extraordinarily dangerous."

Jennings himself recounted this as one of the 'stranger nights' on CNN.

Yes, it was.